


still the same

by Vullet



Category: The Transformers (IDW Generation One)
Genre: M/M, is there a tag for that? who knows, non canon empurata
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-15
Updated: 2018-12-15
Packaged: 2019-09-19 16:30:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,089
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17005140
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vullet/pseuds/Vullet
Summary: Scorponok is really, really, really bad at saying things.Flame is really mad about losing his hands.





	still the same

It’s not really a surprise to find mechs beaten up by the war anymore, Scorponok thought. It’s honestly more surprising to find a bot on either side who hasn’t been affected by all the fighting. Still, he took note of the most noticeable damages. There would always be those who were too low in the ranks to afford having full repairs, and there would always be the expendable made-to-orders. Scorponok didn’t like to particularly look down on those mechs, and found himself with something of respect for them. He’d been fortunate enough to be able to keep himself in good condition over the war, and was generally glad about that. He’d mostly had his ‘illegal’ upgrades to his weaponized alt mode done away from Cybertronian kind, since they considered those with weaponry alts to be more inhuman and aggressive that say, a car. Scorponok had stopped caring though, and didn’t care about the alt mode discrimination he would have faced had he been forged any earlier than he was.

“Scorponok?” the heavily synthesized voice of the other mech broke the thought that was sparked by them. Scorponok shook his head and looked down at the smaller mech, who gave him the most annoyed expression one could make with just a singular optic. The slightly longer claw of the two that served as mech’s hand tapped against Scorponok’s chest, in the spot his insignia would have been had he still had one. “You’re there, right?”

The response was simply Scorponok blinking in confusion. The orange and red mech gave an audible sigh, and drew their arm away from the former Decepticon.

“You’re worthless,” they commented, and turned away. “I _was_ going to tell you that I may have figured out how to do a spark transplant to a non-Cybertronian, like you’ve been asking me since we got here, which is about to count up to a good two hundred solar cycles, but instead you’re out of it as always. I don’t know why the Grand Architect paired me up with _you_.”

“Uh, sorry about that, Flame,” Scorponok stumbled, and put the claw of his own on Flame’s shoulder. “I was just distracted.”

“Cool. Like I care that you seem to disregard my work whenever I do anything remotely nice for you,” the smaller of the duo sneered.

“I wasn’t disregarding you. I was simply distracted.”

“If I had a face, I’d be glaring at you right now.”

“Well you don’t,” Scorponok commented. Flame’s response was to shove an elbow against Scorponok, pushing him up against the wall, and had the claw of his other arm grip at the mech’s neck.

“Don’t you _ever_ say that to me again. I use to be normal like you, y’know? And they took that from me. But you know what? I’m stronger for still continuing on, even if it’s harder to work or express myself.”

“I didn’t mean to offend you.”

“I don’t care.”

“You’re fine the way you are to me, Flame,” Scorponok then spoke, and gently pushed the arm at his throat down towards the other’s side. “I’ll be more careful with comments like that.”

“Thank you.”

 

* * *

 

 

Scorponok found himself about to fall into recharge that night, before the same mech who had attacked him earlier leaned in his doorway holding a datapad, looking at him.

“Are you free?”

“I was going to recharge,” Scorponok replied. Flame took that as a ‘yes’, and walked up to him. He handed the tablet to Scorponok, and crossed his arms. Scorponok stared down at what was an Autopedia article, on the mech who’d handed the datapad to him. “What’s the deal with this?”

“Scroll down.”

Scorponok slide one of his claws down, and sure enough, was the obligatory image of the mech in question. It had, obviously, been taken before anything happened to Flame, and Scorponok looked up. “You don’t have to prove to me you had a face, you know. I believed you.”

“The point is, that I use to be ‘normal’. The Autobots took that away from me. Sure, it would have been criminal charges had someone like Optimus learnt about it, but nobody cared. It barely happened to anyone else who went on trial. I was targeted specifically. That’s just how my life is.”

“Oh, Flame. I’m sorry that ever happened to you, I don’t know why the Autobots would take such a far step back to drop to the Senate’s level.”

“It’s hard to work like this, you know. I could care less about the lack of a proper face. The claws have made my work a lot harder.”

“Why didn’t you ever tell me? I could have asked someone to repair you.”

“I don’t need repairing, I’m whole. I’m still the same Flame I was back when I was onlined. If I’d call it anything, it’d be a forced disability. If I still had hands I could actually work with, I could have gotten anything you asked for done in a quarter of the time.”

“So you’re coming to me to beg for upgrades, huh?”

“Do you think I’d be able to have claws like yours? Triple and jointed, instead of y’know. Two blades less thick than a plate of steel don’t do good science.”

“You don’t want normal hands?”

“I want to prove I’m _better_ than they gave me credit for. I don’t need a full fix or anything, just enough to still pass for being hit fully.”

“I could definitely see if I could get something like mine for you, then,” Scorponok said, and lightly gripped onto Flame’s arm. “You know, I’m sorry about earlier. I’ve probably repeated this a thousand times by now, but I want you to really know, I tend to be insensitive to others-”

“I know.”

“-particularly if I care about them. It’s odd, but I seem to tell you wouldn’t kill me over a mistake that you’d take out others over.”

“Oh.”

“You know, if you ever need something, you can come to me about, alright?”

“Yeah, registered,” Flame commented. “Thanks for the talk.”

“Anytime you need it, Flame.”

“Well, guess I’ll see you around, partner,” Flame said, turned away to leave.

“One last thing, Flame.”

“Mmm?”

“You’re impressive, to still push on no matter what happens to you. I could learn to really care about someone like you.”

“Heh,” Flame said. “Well, maybe we’ll work together some more. You never know what the boss has in plan for us.”

“I hope it comes to that.”

“I hope it comes to that too.”


End file.
